If your talking Harker, Bellarmine, et al you may wany to do further research. I heard (nothing official just gossip) that Bellarmine has real drug problems.

Is there anywhere that doesn't have real drug problems these days? I don't think it's any better in the public schools. And I certainly don't see paying an extra $400K just to get the right school district.

Actually, St. Andrews Episcopal, Menlo School, Sacred Heart and several others are all within the area. So is Harker.

Additionally, the values that lead to catered $5k+ birthday parties for 8 year olds are not the values I want my kids to grow up with.

I agree.

FWIW, I went to a boarding school although I was a day student for all but the last year (at which point I wanted to taste what it was like to live away from home). Everyone there was more wealthy than my family. I didn't have the clothes, or the parties, or the divorced parents or the drug problems that went with all of that. My mom and dad were smart and my extracurricular activities were limited accordingly. So I had no problems growing up (other than the usual ones) and I got a fantastic education.

The public school in my area was not really an option. We had friends whose daughter got mugged in the bathroom because she refused to smoke a joint. Similarly, I would have been toast.